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THE granting of a licence to Australian mining group Transworld Energy Minerals (TEM) to mine heavy minerals on the pristine dunes at Xolobeni, on the Wild Coast, was “clearly improper and ought to be withdrawn”.
This is according to the Legal Resources Centre (LRC), acting for the AmaDiba Trust which comprises members of the affected communities at Xolobeni. The appeal documents claim that the Minerals and Energy Department failed to co-operate with other departments as required, blatantly ignored objections to the proposed mining project and failed entirely to implement its own statutory requirements for the issuing of mining licences.
The community is appealing against the department’s decision to grant TEM the mining licence. The LRC, on behalf of the trust, will make oral submissions to the Minerals and Mining Development Board which will sit in Durban early next week.
The LRC says the mining right should never have been granted because:
The Xolobeni area was part of a protected marine area and mining required the written permission of the minister of minerals and energy, the provincial MEC and the minister of environmental affairs and tourism. Such written permission was never provided. In fact, the department had completely ignored serious objections and concerns raised by the Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism, including its concern that mining could negatively affect the adjacent Mkambati Nature Reserve.
The mining would cause unacceptable pollution, and environmental degradation and damage.
No community resolution was passed authorising mining activities on the land.
The public consultation process undertaken by TEM was a “sham” and not in line with statutory requirements.
The environmental impact assessment undertaken by TEM was severely deficient in that it had failed to provide key environmental reports, including baseline reports, had failed to consider and assess alternative land uses, and had not assessed cumulative impacts.
TEM’s application to mine the area had also been fatally flawed. For instance, the group had never provided proof of its technical and financial ability to mitigate and rehabilitate relevant environmental impacts.
TEM had ignored requests from the Minerals and Energy Department for required information, including a detailed mining plan setting out the mine design and proposed infrastructure, water reticulation plans to manage environmental degradation, and rehabilitation plans. – Daily Dispatch
